When a client's change doesn't stick, the session usually ended before the last block showed up, or the client expected the high to last. You can catch most of this before the call ends. Test whether the old feeling comes back, and give them one small action to take that same day.
Why does a client relapse after a coaching session?
A client usually slips back for one of two reasons. Something was still sitting underneath that the session didn't reach, or they felt a normal dip and decided the work had failed.
I know both from my own life. For years I bought programmes and travelled to events, and none of it worked to the level I wanted.
Later I pushed my income up fast through hustle and grind, but I couldn't hold the life I'd reached. The fears and doubts were still there underneath.
Another time, I was invited to be in a film like The Secret. Back then it felt like too much for me, and I couldn't take it. That's why I say on our calls that "the body needs to be able to hold the life you want."
On one of those calls, someone put it well: "the whole changing of the state thing is great, but the trick is having it last." So the first place to check is the session itself.
How do you know when a session is finished?
A session is finished when the client tries to go back to the old feeling and can't. Until you've tested that, you're guessing.
Every session starts with a number. The client rates the feeling from 0 to 10. We stop short of zero on purpose, because a little of the feeling is useful. The course says it plainly: "Under 3 is the target."
Then I ask the client to try hard to feel the old feeling again. It should feel like there's a wall, or maybe an elastic, stopping them. If they can drop down, another feeling is holding the old one in place, often plain doubt that the change will last.
I also ask them to picture a week from now, then a year from now. My rule: "if they feel like it won't last, then the process is not finished."
In one live demo, a member rated how long her change would last at 10. When I asked her to try to go back, she felt a quick jolt of fear that she wouldn't take action. We worked on that fear, and when she tried again, she said, "I can't." That's what you're looking for.
The test also points you to the next tool, so you run the right protocol for the right problem. In the course, a hard memory from one event goes to Negative Memory Release, and the imposter worksheet is "for what they've been carrying a long time."
If someone slips back after that worksheet, they've usually missed some of the ways the old feeling helped them. So they write a longer list.
Is it normal for the good feeling to fade?
Yes. The high at the end of a session settles down, and that's normal. I warn clients before they leave, so a dip doesn't scare them.
I'll say something like, "it's going to come down to contentment and that's where you want to be." Some days you're tired, and nobody feels it 24/7.
When a client dips and decides it's not working, the feeling has settled into something steady, like a secure relationship rather than fireworks.
I know this one from the inside. I'm a mismatcher, always hunting for what's wrong in me. For years I chased a perfect feeling, more confident and more certain, before I thought I'd see results.
Then I noticed how many people knew way less than me and felt less sure, and they were reaching their goals anyway. As I tell people now, "there's no perfect state."
In that same demo, I asked if her nerves would come back once she started taking action. She said, "It may, but I don't think it'll stop me." The feeling can show up and still not run the show.
Allen Levings said this a week after I worked with him live on a call: "Every time, I end up with 'let's f*cking do this' instead."
If a client feels blocked again later, book another session. Many people feel a change in one session, and some need more. In my own practice the median is about two. I tell clients up front, "just book in another session. You don't even have to email me."
Some things are bigger than coaching. If a client is struggling with something outside your skills, refer them to a therapist or a licensed professional. If I can't help someone, I refund them or pass them on.
How do you make client results stick?
Get the client to act on the new feeling soon, and to notice that they did. In the course I put it like this: "You feel great in the room, then it fades. It fades because the brain needs proof."
So the goal session ends with three actions the client can take right away, like posting a video. Then they act as the new self would and confirm it: "I did that. This is me now."
The action has to fit the person. I once worked with a man who wanted to write a book and called himself a procrastinator. On our video call he kept moving around in his chair, and sitting at a computer for hours was too dull for him.
I asked how it would feel to go for a walk and record the book on his phone. All it took was a shift in how he did the work. I tell people it's okay to put things off sometimes. I procrastinate too.
Their surroundings matter as well. Sometimes a client needs a talk with a partner or a friend, or a new boundary, so the old belief isn't fed to them every day. If they can't change where they are right now, it usually takes more than one session.
The best proof of a change is what people do next. Clark Kegley, who has 1.9M YouTube subscribers, was stuck with imposter syndrome. After a session with me, he filmed five videos that week, and one went viral with 100,000 views that month.
Yashwant said, "Before, for me to say £3,000, my tongue would fall back on itself." He now quotes a thousand as his minimum.
How The Complete Practitioner handles this
In each protocol in The Complete Practitioner, the client rates the feeling from 0 to 10 before and after, aiming for under 3 rather than zero. The course also teaches you to test whether the old feeling comes back before the session ends.
Members run each protocol on themselves first, then with clients. The goal session ends with action steps, and Peak Performance Activation adds a daily practice. The recorded live calls show the test in action, and the course is clear about when to refer someone on.
Questions people ask
Why don't coaching results last?
Often the session ended before the last block came up, or the client expected the high to stay. Test whether the old feeling comes back, and give the client one small action to take that day.
Should a client feel zero about the problem after a session?
No. In The Complete Practitioner the aim is under 3 out of 10. A little of the feeling is useful. You want a client who feels steady enough to act, even on a tired day.
How many sessions does a client usually need?
Many people feel a change in one session, and some need more. Gavin Speaks puts the median in his own practice at about two sessions. If a client's surroundings keep feeding the old belief, expect more than one.
What if a client's problem is bigger than coaching?
Refer them to a therapist or a licensed professional. Coaching works with everyday feelings and habits, like doubt or putting things off. The Complete Practitioner teaches members to refer on cases outside their skills.